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Alabama Power crews restored service to customers in Alabama and assisted in Florida and Georgia where Hurricane Michael created widespread outages and infrastructure damage. (Wynter Byrd / Alabama NewsCenter)

The Edison Electric Institute (EEI) awarded Alabama Power with the EEI “Emergency Assistance Award” and the “Emergency Recovery Award” for its outstanding power restoration efforts after Hurricane Michael hit Alabama, Georgia, and Florida in October 2018.

The Emergency Assistance Award and Emergency Recovery Award are given to EEI member companies to recognize their efforts to assist other electric companies’ power restoration efforts, and for their own extraordinary efforts to restore power to customers after service disruptions caused by severe weather conditions or other natural events. The winners are chosen by a panel of judges following an international nomination process.

Alabama Power crews enact their plan for storm restoration following Hurricane Michael. (file)

Alabama Power trucks ready for duty in storm restoration. (file)

Alabama Power crews prepare for storm restoration duty. (file)

Alabama Power Distribution engineer Jodi Franklin on the job in the aftermath of Hurricane Michael. Franklin says storm restoration is the most rewarding part of her job. (contributed)

An Alabama Power worker surveys the damage caused by Hurricane Michael in Florida. (M. Walker Hutchens)

A field of corn lies nearly flattened by Hurricane Michael in southeast Alabama. (Alabama Extension)

Houston County took the heaviest hit in Alabama when Hurricane Michael moved through. (Karim Shamsi-Basha)

Hurricane Michael did heavy damage in Houston County, and Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD) was ready to help. (Karim Shamsi-Basha)

Devastation is being met by the enduring spirit of those working to make repairs after Hurricane Michael. (Allen Whisenant)

A sign of appreciation for Alabama Power crews working to repair damage after Hurricane Michael. (Leslie Eiland)

Power trucks need fuel to continue pushing with assistance in parts of Florida damaged by Hurricane Michael. (Alabama NewsCenter)

An Alabama Power crew works on restoration following Hurricane Michael’s devastating blow. (file)

Alabama Power crews help in the restoration efforts following Hurricane Michael’s devastating blow. (file)

Devastation is being met by the enduring spirit of those working to make repairs after Hurricane Michael. (Allen Whisenant)

Hurricane Michael left a path of destruction that required much hard work from Alabama Power. (John Paul Jones)

Hurricane Michael left a path of destruction that requires much hard work from Alabama Power and other utility companies providing assistance. (John Paul Jones)

“Alabama Power’s extraordinary efforts were instrumental to restoring service for customers across Alabama, Georgia, and Florida quickly and safely,” said EEI President Tom Kuhn. “We are pleased to recognize the dedicated crews from Alabama Power for their work to restore service in hazardous conditions and to assist neighboring electric companies in their times of need.”

Hurricane Michael, the strongest storm to make landfall during the 2018 hurricane season, was a Category 5 hurricane with peak winds of 160 mph. The storm hit Mexico Beach, Fla., on October 10 before being downgraded to a tropical storm and traveling northeast through Georgia and several Mid-Atlantic states. Alabama Power sent more than 1,400 lineworkers and 700 trucks to help restore service to customers over the course of two and a half months.

Hurricane Michael also resulted in 89,438 service outages in Alabama Power’s territory. Due to their tireless work, Alabama Power’s crews restored power to 100 percent of customers within four days after the storm, dedicating more than 124-thousand hours to the recovery.